Book flights through Cruise Line or Airline?

[DentoAlaska]

I was wondering what you seasoned cruisers have experienced on costs of flights. Is it more economical to book through Princess or through the airlines?

 

We are booked for a July, 2015 cruise/tour which will begin in Anchorage and end in Vancouver. The flights are not yet available on the Princess site but are on the airlines sites. I have to admit that I'm having a little sticker shock right now. :eek:

 

I appreciate all of your knowledge and would welcome you sharing your experiences with me.

 

Thanks!

[Mrs. Squirrel]

I have to admit that I'm having a little sticker shock right now. :eek:

 

OP, I can't help, but I can sympathize. Just looked at airfare for our cruise next July. . .not like flying to Florida for a cruise in either distance, multiple plane changes or price!

 

I will be watching your thread for responses.

[lauren0309]

I never book through the cruiselines. They're prices are similar to even more than what I find. Also, for our very first cruise we booked through the cruiseline and we got awful flight times. By the time we got to the ship the lunch buffet was over and there was nothing to eat but whatever was left. We felt also a total day was wasted, whereas if we would have booked our own flight we could have arrived early at be on the ship by 11:00 a.m. which is another vacation day to enjoy the ship itself.

[EatSleepCruise]

We book outside of the cruise line.

 

I have never sailed with Princess, but we have found that the cruise line's give you awful times and the rates really are not that competitive.

 

Coming from the Northeast, we have always found Jet Blue and Southwest have flights that enable to catch your ship on embarkation and leave late enough when you return to not worry about missing the flight home.

 

No matter what airline, depending where you live, you have to fly in a day before your cruise to catch the departure. Especially if you are doing a one-way cruise leaving from Alaska.

[lauren0309]

Yes another comment to my previous one as the previous poster said. We never fly in the day of. We only did it once when we were beginners. Now that we've learned the ropes (lol) we know to fly in the day before. You never know what can happen which can cause the flight to be delayed and cause you to miss your ship.

[Ashland]

I always prefer to book my own flights directly with the carrier or in some cases carrier's..and have no 3rd party involved.

 

We just returned from our 3rd Alaska northbound cruise and have arrived morning of departure each time with no problem...but I use a nonstop LAX-YVR..usually one carrier outbound and another carrier return...this works well for us...

 

So depending on where you're flying from please don't let other's scare you from doing a sameday arrival...each of us has to weigh our options and personal circumstances.

[DentoAlaska]

First of all, I apologize for posting this question twice! :eek:

 

Thank you all for your replies. You have confirmed what I suspected but I thought maybe the cruise lines secured some special fares. Wishful thinking for sure!

[LEtue]

Southwest, Jet Blue and Alaska Air may work for you - coming from CO. American has been posting some nice fares lately so check all airlines.

 

You might consider a RT flight to Seattle and a one way to Anchorage. You will have to transfer back SEA from Vancouver on the end but it still could be cheaper. I have had to get creative over the years myself......

 

Also consider booking 2 one way tickets to lessen the impact of buying a RT all at once.

[Hikini]

I don't have experience with this, but here's something to think about. I have heard that if you book through the cruise lines, and then something happens with your flight where you are delayed, the ship will not depart without you, within a reasonable time frame. You don't have that guarantee if you book outside of the cruise lines.

 

Good luck!

[aarrcc2]

We compare cruise line price with airline price. We have used Princess Air and Celebrity Choice Air many times. One thing to consider is that transfers may be covered with cruise line airfare while they are an additional cost if not using cruise line airfare. Even with cruise line airfare, we pick the flights we want. We compare all costs and choose the most reasonable.

[greatam]

I don't have experience with this, but here's something to think about. I have heard that if you book through the cruise lines, and then something happens with your flight where you are delayed, the ship will not depart without you, within a reasonable time frame. You don't have that guarantee if you book outside of the cruise lines.

 

Good luck!

 

Mostly pure urban legend.

 

While there may be a FEW times the ship will wait, it definitely won't wait out of Vancouver. The ships MUST leave due to the tides. Going through the Seymour Narrows is dangerous and the pilot boats INSIST the ships leave while the tide is out and the waters are their calmest. The pilot boats don't want to put the ship in danger by waiting and leaving when the tide is coming in. Due to the "bowl shaped" jagged rock filled Narrows, the tides very often reach 15 knot speeds and that is dangerous to the ship.

 

And waiting for a few passengers on cruise line booked air at other ports is very much the decision of the Captain. The port may need the space for another ship or the additional dockage fee of possibly $50-100,000 is not justified.

[greatam]

Just a helpful hint

 

During the last weeks of September/first of October, Alaska residents get their PDF (Permanent Divident Fund) checks (the oil money distributed to Alaska residents yearly).

 

Alaska Air ALWAYS puts flights on sale the minute the PDF checks go out. Most flights are to warm winter destinations to lure some of the PDF money out of residents pockets. But I have frequently seen sale flights to Washington DC, NYC, Boston, even Detroit. Once AS posts their sale prices, other airlines generally match.

 

I send about 8 employees to Alaska every summer to oversee our fish shipping business. They fly from NYC, Kansas City and Arizona. I generally find the cheapest fares every year during the PDF sale. This year the checks go out on October 2, so start looking for sale fares from Sept 25 on.